Hemp Fertilizer | Do You Even Need It?
Why You’ll Require Hemp Fertilizer
Nitrates
It isn’t physically possible for a particular crop to grow without the use of some kind of fertilizer. However, there are regions of the world that are more blessed than others. These regions have higher thunderstorm activity. As a result, lightning converts atmospheric nitrogen to nitrates, which fall with the rain. Nitrates are perhaps the most essential macro-nutrient for plants. It helps them make chlorophyll, the pigment that helps plants make food using sunlight. So, hemp farmers claiming they don’t need fertilizer may be cultivating their plants in such regions.
Soil Exhaustion
If you end up listening to farmers who assert that hemp requires no fertilizer, the chances are that you’ll find that to be true for the first couple of crops you cultivate. At some point, the nutrient-rich soil will lose these nutrients as they are not an unlimited resource. This can become a costly endeavor because it may result in the loss of crops, especially when you’re business is growing.
What Fertilizer Would You Need?
The fertilizer you require all depends on the soil you plan to plant your hemp in. Before you order any fertilizer, it is crucial to assess the soil that you have to work with. It entails taking different soil samples from various points in your field to determine the kind of nutrients it is abundant and deficient in. Below are some nutrients you need to look for in your soil test.
Macro-nutrients
This class of nutrients forms the bulk of a plant’s requirements, including hemp. Plants get their oxygen, carbon, and hydrogen from the atmosphere via respiration and transpiration, but the soil is responsible for providing the following macro-nutrients:
- Nitrogen: For chlorophyll synthesis to make food
- Phosphorus: For adenosine triphosphate synthesis – essential for plant metabolism
- Potassium: For nutrient transport, absorption, and regulation
Other than macro-nutrients, plants like hemp also require nutrients in trace amounts (micro-nutrients) like:
- Boron: For strong cell walls.
- Calcium: For strong cell walls and aids in metabolism.
- Manganese: Aids in plant growth, reproduction, and nutrient absorption.
- Iron: For maintaining chloroplast (Chlorophyll containing part of plant cell) health.
- Magnesium: Essential for photosynthetic pigments – chlorophyll a and b.
- Copper: Required during photosynthesis.
- Molybdenum: Essential for plant roots. Helps converts nitrogen in the soil into a more usable form for the plant.
- Sulfur: Essential for synthesizing plant proteins.
- Zinc: Also essential for making plant proteins.
Bottom Line
Soil assay or tests are your best course of action for determining your Hemp fertilizer requirement. You can look up fertilizers that are packed with essential macro and micro-nutrients. Alternatively, you can use a mix of specialized NPK fertilizers and bio-stimulants as per your need. In addition to hemp fertilizer, keep in mind that soil texture, pH, and drainage also play an important role in hemp farming. Don’t forget to consider them when planting your crop.
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